The New Dragon on the Block
by VigilantSempai
Summary: He was first and foremost a Fairy Tail mage. Sure, he was the Salamander, the Fire Dragon Slayer, savior of Fiore, Hero, and all around badass. So when he woke up in a strange world, covered in strange markings, without his magic, Natsu Dragneel did the only thing a Fairy Tail mage could do: He punched something. It was only logical. Divergent at Ch. 465.


AN: Hello and welcome nerds, geeks, weirdos, and fellow anime enthusiasts. This is the first chapter of my Fairy Tail- HighSchool DxD crossover. I've never actually done a Fairy Tail story though I have had several different templates in my head for a while. Anyway let's get the part that you're here for!

Onward, to the story!

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail or HighSchool DxD, nor do I make any money from this.**

* * *

 _Feelings:_

 _This thing- most of all- is_

 _The world of men's_

 _Unbreakable_

 _Bond_

 _~Ono no Kamachi - KKS XVII: 939_

* * *

Natsu Dragneel, Rias reflected, was a conundrum; the walking, breathing, real life definition of an oxymoron. Just watching as he walked passed the central fountain and out of the school gates, giving a small nod to a group of passing girls as he did, reinforced her opinion of him.

He had been in Kuoh longer than she had been, and was rumored to be the very first boy that the administration had accepted when it had changed into a co-ed school. He was currently a year below her, a second year with average grades, but that was where his normalcy ended. To start he had pink hair. Not red hair like her own, or even a more common ginger color, but honest to Maou, pink hair that seemed to have never been tamed, even when he was younger.

Next was the fact that he was never seen without his scarf; a pitch black length of cloth that seemed permanently glued to his neck and lower face. He wore it on the hottest day in the summer, as well as to gym class, which brought her to her next query about him: he was always covered in bandages.

When she had first seen him, she had noticed the bandages wrapped around his arms and hand simply attributed that to proof of the rumors about his supposed delinquency. But not only was he extremely nice to anyone he met, giving the same small nod and a helping hand if needed, but he was also covered in bandages from chest to toe. Apparently there was an actual reason behind it, as the faculty hadn't made a fuss about it, actually allowing him to keep his bandages, and when she asked her father about it he had just said that he had some skin disease.

But the weirdest and most contradicting thing about Natsu Dragneel was that he didn't speak. The teachers and her peers hadn't pressed him when he was first asked a question and he responded by taking out a notepad and writing his answer down on it. That alone would have made Rias take notice him. No one normal came to Kuoh and couldn't speak, not to mention how it clashed badly with his outstanding physical features. First was his hair, then came his insanely ripped body that the girls of the school drooled over whenever the swimming unit came up in gym. Even though his whole body was covered in bandages, his rippling muscles had been easy enough to see through the thin cloth.

It truly was a shame he never actually got into the pool.

Watching until the pinkette disappear around a corner, Rias turned from the window and moved to her desk. She was not alone in the room; Koneko, the white-haired first year was sitting on one of the two couches in the room, a slice of cake on the plate in her hand while an assortment of sweets waited on the coffee table. Somewhere behind her, Rias knew, Akeno was preparing some tea knowing that she would want some after her shower.

Glancing over the several pieces of paper on her desk, Rias spied what she was looking for. The school's database was woefully bare on the pink-haired boy. Even though she had gone through it several times, Rias couldn't stop herself from perusing the contents of his file again.

 **Name:** Natsu Dragneel

 **Age:** 17

 **Height:** 5'11" (177.8 cm)

 **Weight:** 185 lbs

 **Hair Color:** Pink (?)

 **Eye Color:** Black

 **Blood Type:** O-

 **Parents:** (?)

 **Siblings:** (?)

The rest of the file was a record of all things pertaining to his schooling: grades, accomplishments, classes taken, et cetera. Funnily enough, there was several papers dedicated to police reports filed about numerous cases that Natsu had been mentioned in. Having read them before, Rias knew that the cops were either not able to pin the pink-haired conundrum with a crime, or had intentionally overlooked his misdemeanors. There were several cases where Natsu had been heavily implied of having beaten up local gangs, as well as more cases where he'd been checked into the hospital with mysterious injuries.

There was even a note about public indecency, and property damage.

Frowning, Rias set the file back onto her desk and headed over to the shower in the corner of the room deep in thought. Everything about Natsu Dragneel screamed abnormal, _supernatural_ , but for the life of her she couldn't find anything to connect him with the supernatural world. Judging by his grades, he was of average intelligence, though she suspected he'd have higher scores if he actually focused in class. He'd been in Kuoh longer than her or Souna, and, sans the occasional gang, he wasn't in contact with any dangerous beings. With all that considered she could assume that he wasn't in contact with the Fallen Angels, and he was a documented atheist, so there was no way he was connected to the Angels.

Rias unclasped her shoulder cape letting it fall to the ground before she started to unbutton her corset, glancing at Koneko who was eating contently on the couch. If Rias was totally honest with herself, she wouldn't have ever known about the mystery that was Natsu Dragneel if it hadn't been for the little first year. It was after she had spread the word to her peerage to observe Hyoudou Issei that Koneko has spoken up, rather out of character for the girl.

"Perverted-senpai smell like Pink-senpai," she had said, and when Rias had pressed for more information, she had just shrugged and started munching on a new cookie.

Letting her blouse and corset fall to the round around her feet, Rias unzipped her skirt, before she reached up to unclasp her cream colored bra. She liked to sleep naked, that was no secret, but, if she was feeling stressed or irritated, she would start finding the confines of clothes to be uncomfortable. Letting her cream-colored bra fall to the ground, swiftly followed by her matching panties, Rias surmised that the query about Natsu Dragneel was most definitely irritating just for the sheer abstractness of life on paper.

She stepped into the shower, closed the curtains, and turned a knob, letting hot water run through her hair and down her body. She sighed contently and started running her hands through her crimson tresses.

On paper, Natsu looked like an unfortunate teen at best or a delinquent at worst. With his constant run in with the gangs of Kuoh and beyond, and the law, someone could make a plea that he was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time; an unfortunate soul with bad luck. But looking a bit deeper, she could easily see that it wasn't nearly as simple as that. No, with the amount of run ins he's had with gangs and cops, there is no way that his luck was that bad. He'd have to be a Manga protagonist for that.

Not only that, but the injuries that he'd been admitted into the hospital for were increasingly absurd and suspicious. Falling from a tree and breaking his arm and cracking several of his ribs, getting attacked by a flock of birds, diving in a river to save a fox and nearly drowning. Then there was the more concerning one's: getting attacked by a group of wolves, being stomped on by several horses, being bitten by a poisonous snake as well as having an arm broken by said snake. The list went on and on, the injuries getting more and more gruesome, but Rias had never seen the pink-haired boy in a sling for more than three days at a time.

Unless the person that filed his medical reports was lying, Natsu Dragneel had an advanced healing factor. Rias had been ecstatic when she had realized this, and immediately went out to test his magical potential, but when she did she couldn't help but feel extremely disappointed and confused.

He had next to no magical potential.

When she had evaluated him, she had gotten that he actually had less magic than an average human. The fact that he was alive and moving around actually astounded her. Anybody with that little amount of energy in there body was sure to be constantly sick if not on their deathbed. But in spite of that, Natsu Dragneel was more active than a lot of people; running, jumping, helping, and fighting people constantly. _And_ his best scores were in physical education.

The constant contradictions, setbacks, mystery, and her own doubts that surrounded the whole issue had made Rias do something she didn't like doing. She hesitated.

Sure with the issue with Issei, she couldn't exactly make a move right now, as the Fallen Angels had practically shouted to the skies that they were interested in him, and with him being followed almost all hours of the day by one of them, she had no window of opening to get to him privately outside of school hours for any extended period of time to explain the situation. So she waited. She knew that they would do to him, and the thought of not doing anything left a bad taste in her mouth, but she had a contingency plan, something that left an even worse taste on her tongue, but he'd be able to live and that was her first priority.

She was a Gremory, as well as one of the devil tasked with the protection of the city of Kuoh.

If it hadn't been for the revelation about Natsu Dragneel's… abnormalities, she would have already had one of her peerage members bring Hyoudou to the clubroom and explained everything to him in hope that he'd agree to join. She knew he probably would, and her asking him personally would increase her chances of getting another peerage member. But with the Crows hovering around one kohai and the other a giant mystery, Rias was at an impasse at how to proceed, finally choosing that she would wait for the Fallen to make their move and use that time to look into Natsu Dragneel.

Rias stopped running her hand through her hair, and placed them on her breasts, her palms centered over her nipples. She gave them a soft squeeze, sighing. It was a bad habit she had for the longest of time, and something only Akeno knew about. She had picked up the habit when she had first started growing breasts; using her hands to massage her chest to alleviate the uncomfortable and slightly sore sensation in her chest. It quickly grew into a relaxation method before she realized the sensuality of her actions, and by the time she realized it, it had become an ingrained relaxing method for her.

Akeno had found out and teased her mercilessly about it, and it was only thought the promise that Rias would owe her a giant favor that she kept her mouth shut. Now, if she was having a long and stressful night, Akeno would help her out by massaging her breasts, though she did it a bit rougher than Rias liked, it was still soothing nonetheless.

She sighed, realizing that her choice to wait on the Fallen to make a move on Issei was wrong. She knew that if she did something while they had their eyes on them that she could spark a second Great War, between the factions. She had already spoken to her brother about the Fallen's presence, and he had assured her that he was going to talk to Azazel, the leader of the Grigori. But that had been weeks ago, and time was running out for her, not to mention that she was being unfair to Sona who had agreed to back off for her.

She would have Kiba bring Hyoudou to the clubroom after school ended tommorrow, explain everything to him, and hopefully have a new Peerage member. After he settled in, maybe a week or so, she'd go and confront Natsu Dragneel. She knew that she was treading on thin ice, but she was a Gremory and she wouldn't willingly let one of her future family members die just so that she'd avoid the confrontation. A Gremory would fight even God himself if it was to keep one of their family safe.

She released her breasts, feeling better, and moved to massage her scalp. She could possibly spark the Second Great War tomorrow, and it was all because of a shower, a breast rub, and a pink-haired enigma.

Oh well. Wars had been started on less.

* * *

The sun was finally setting.

Natsu had never been a person that really took time to appreciate the beauty of the world around him, until a few years ago that was. He'd woken up to the grey of dawn, his back against the trunk of a tree surrounded by forests and a still serenity that could only be found in sleep. And indeed the world had been asleep, the animals having all returned to their dens after a night activity, and the humans were still asleep bound to be woken by the rise of the sun.

For a time, he thought he was still in Magnolia; still in Fiore and the world of magic. The trees were smaller than what he was used to though, and the air had felt weird, depraved but heavy. But the silence, the peace that had surrounded him, wrapped him in a warm blanket of contentment and blissful isolation. But then, in the east, the sky had brightened, and any reservations that he was still in Fiore had been washed from his mind.

Now Natsu had been a mage of some renown, most of his infamy coming from his destructive exploits. In his line of work he had been expected to travel, which didn't bother him as he liked to move around. Consequently he had been all around Fiore, seen its sights, and experienced a lot that it had to offer.

He'd seen the famed prairies, an expanse of flat land that stretched for miles and even leagues.

He'd been to the mountains, lived in them, was raised there by Igneel, learned to thrived off the life there and appreciate it's brutal beauty and honesty.

He'd walked through the forests of Fiore, reveling in the chaos that was nature (as well as taking down more than a few trees).

He'd swam in the oceans, submerging himself in it's cool embrace and letting himself roam free in an attempt to discover its mysteries.

He'd pushed through deserts, roamed cities (lively and not so much), cursed his way through bogs, stolled through tundras, even meandered his way to the capital once or twice.

But never in Natsu's travels had he seen a sunrise like the one in front of him. The sun slowly rose, a giant ball of muted orange and yellow light. It's rays seemed to streak through the sky in lines that mixed with the existing deep blue of the sky. Orange turned to red on the horizon, growing hotter and hotter, brighter and brighter until it was yellow. He watched for what seamed like hours, feeling the cool shadows of the night recede, leaving him to bask in the warmth of the early morning sun.

It reminded him of Lucy's magic when she called a celestial spirit, or Erza's when she Requiped.

 _It is with awe/ That I Beheld/ Fresh leaves, free leaves/ Bright in the sun. (It is with awe ~ Matsu Bashō)_

That day was the only day that Natsu hadn't swore he'd eat the sun, and while he liked to attribute that to the beautiful phenomenon that had happened in front of him it mostly had to deal with the fact that he'd been de-aged.

Again.

Not to mention the markings that had appeared on his body.

Now, as the sun was setting, Natsu couldn't help the small grin that came to his face. Japan was known as the Land of Sunrises, but he believed that it should also be known as the Land of Sunsets. Or maybe just the Land of Sun. Because he was in the middle of the city, Natsu couldn't actually see the horizon, or the sun actually, but he could look up and watch the sky as it was bathed in a plethora of different colors.

His favorite time was right now, when the sky wasn't too light to chase away the darkness, nor was it dark enough for the shadows to lengthen and intermingle. It was perfect, and the sky above was akin to a color flow chart; yellow to red to orange.

Like it was on fire.

Natsu's body started tingling, itching underneath the bandages. He tore his eyes from the sky readjusting the scarf around his neck and face. Dressed in black ripped jeans, and black and red sneakers with a plain blood red shirt underneath a grey zip up hoodie he blended into the crowd. A regular teenager. His black scarf was wrapped around his neck, pulled up to cover the bottom of his face, leaving only his amber eyes and pink hair uncovered.

He scanned the street as he walked, noticing how the majority of the people were walking in the opposite direction as him. Good, the less people around the better. He turned a corner immediately seeing his destination ahead, speeding up into a brisk walk. The smell reached him before he reached the gate, a combination of rotting food, shit, and rusting metal.

He frowned as he reached the gates, tugging the scarf closer around his face in a vain attempt to spare his sensitive nose from the horrid smell. He gazed up at the sign on the gate, noticing that the kanji were so faded that they were barely legible.

 _Kuoh Sewage Plant_

The actual building was a ways away, behind several mounds of trash and excrement. The sewage plant had closed down over ten years ago, though the place had been used as a landfill for eight more years, until the neighboring businesses had complained to the city council about the decrease in sales because of the smell. The government, naturally, did only enough to be considered the bare minimum. After officially claiming the property as government property, the council hired a team to isolate and remove the smelliest items in the landfill. The rest (i.e. the majority of the trash) was left, apparently 'not the council's problems'.

They had all but abandoned the plot of land, and the immediate owners of the building around it had cut their leases short and left. Now it was place of urban legend that the local teens liked to use for dares or shows of bravery. Nothing bad had happened in the last two years, (beyond mild sickness, small lacerations, and the death of a house pet or two) until two months ago. A group of teen had been admitted into the hospital, covered in claw wounds, all claiming that they were set upon by a group of wild dogs. Just last week, one of the kids, Toya Aito, had claimed that she needed closure and headed back into the landfill.

She had yet to come out.

Natsu sighed, reaching into his pocket and taking out a small, slightly ruffled piece of paper.

 _Kuoh Sewage Plant_

 _April 17_ _th_ _: 12:01_

 _$30,000 US (¥3,379,379.25)_

The location was highlighted in yellow, but underlined with a red pen. Glancing between the gate and the paper once, Natsu shoved the paper back into his back pocket, and approached the gate, his skin tingling more the closer he got. He ignored it, and finally placed a hand on the lock holding the chain to keep the gate shut. His skin buzzed. He shot a look around the road, noticing how it was currently deserted, before grasping the lock firmly and yanking quickly, breaking it as well as several links on the chain with nothing but pure strength.

He pulled on one end of the chain until it was fully unwrapped from the gates and pushed the gates opened, stepping inside. He kept the chain though. His skin finally stopped buzzing as the sky turned from its soothing flame kaleidoskop to blood red. The crescent moon was a pale silver, gleaming ominously, and black clouds ghosted through the air. The landfill, which had looked disgusting but nothing else on the outside, was now covered in a thick grey mist, the mounds of trash casting ominous shadows over each other.

Another sigh escaped Natsu's lips before he remembered a poem. ' _Tremble, oh my grave mound!/ in time my cries will be/ only this autumn wind._ ' The mist came up to about Natsu's waist, though it was thick, and he could hardly see his own feet. He knew that the barrier must have been something at least moderately powerful for his magic to react from all the way down the street, but for the barrier to have been hiding this meant that the being here was at least semi-competent.

He smirked, feeling the usual sensation course through his body right before a fight. His adrenalin started pumping, and his heightened senses sharpened. He smiled, though the only indication that it happened was the movement of the skin around his eyes. He stepped further inside, the gate swinging shut behind him, and Natsu felt the barrier mend itself, effectively sealing him inside. ' _That's okay,'_ he thought as he kept walking, wrapping the chain around his right hand and arm. ' _That just means we won't be interrupted.'_

He moved through the landfill, sticking to the paths that wrapped around the giant piles of trash. Whatever being that was staying here must have been at least passingly knowledgeable about magic because the place was bigger than it seamed. Still Natsu was undeterred, his footsteps muted by the thick mist, as his breath was by his scarf.

He was about halfway to the actual sewage plant, in an area surrounded by five large piles of trash, when they made their move. A set of glowing red eyes appeared out of the white-grey mist ahead of him, filled with malice and hunger, followed closely by several more sets of eyes. Natsu slowly rotated, gazing on as more and more red eyes appeared out of the mist around him. He was surrounded, but the realization didn't do anything to worry him. Instead, his body responded as if on it's own accord. His stance widened and he raised his arms, the blood and adrenaline pumping through his veins faster.

' _Twenty,'_ he counted.

A growl sounded to his left, followed quickly by one to his right, then his left again, right, front, left, back, front. Soon enough all of his enemies were growling at him. Natsu nearly felt inclined to growl back, but he didn't instead he glared the animal in front of him, holding its gaze, as the world suddenly fell silent. There was a stillness, a collective holding of breath, that stretched on for what felt like eternity to his heightened senses, before a black cloud drifted in front of the moon.

In the distance, a wolf howled, and the world blurred into action.

Natsu spun and caught the animal that lunged at him from his left, a hellhound he realized, on his right forearm, not even blinking at the pressure of its jaws clamped around his chain covered appendage. Not even stopping his movement in the slightest, Natsu continued spinning, his footwork making several more hellhounds streak past him, before he lashed out with his right arm, using the hound to bat one of its brethren out of the air.

Hellhound were big, larger than most dogs, though they were around the same size of an untamed wolf. There fur was black and, at least the ones here, matted with waste. Their teeth were large and as sharp as any dagger, while they might as well have knives for nails. Natsu knew from prior experience that they were smart, or at least smart enough to come to come up with rudimentary strategies.

A yelp sounded through the night, but Natsu barely noticed. He lashed out with a spinning kick that caught on hellhound in the side of its head a launched into a trash pile. He spun again, ducking under leaping hound, before lashing out with his chain covered fist. It sank deep into the maw of an unsuspecting hellhound. He yanked his fist out and moved as to keep himself from being clawed by another hound, leaving his first kill of the night to gurgle and drown in it's own blood.

The fight continued, and Natsu was emerging victorious. He broke the jaws of several hellhounds, either by a kick or punch, or grabbing them when they attempted to bite him and yanking their mouth apart viciously. More still suffered from crushed rib cages or broken legs, victims of his strength. Some had been lost into the distance, having been hit straight while in the air and sent on their merry way.

In the end, there were only two hellhounds left, their brethren lay about them broken, bloodied, or dead under the mist. They circled him slowly, one snapping it's jaws at him in an attempt to distract him so the other could get behind him to deal a crippling blow.

Natsu let them.

He was getting bored of them, and wanted to get to the big guy, though he did have to give them props. They fought until the very end.

The hellhound that had gotten behind him lunged, not even snarling in an attempt keep his presence concealed, while the other one went in to claw his shins to ribbons with his razor sharp claws. In a move that neither of the hounds thought that he'd do, Natsu leapt into a backflip, lashing out with a kick that connected to the airborne hounds back with a sickening crack causing the body to shoot toward its partner on the ground like a bullet. The two collided, and Natsu heard several _snap_ 's and _crack_ 's accompanied by a small yelp, before the world fell silent again.

Natsu, having used the kick to give himself some more elevation flipped again in the air, before he landed, crouching slightly to take the strain off his knees. He straightened, glancing around for anymore foes, but the fog was thick, and he couldn't even see the broken bodies of the hellhounds that lay on the ground. He breathed in deep, his cotton scarf doing little to filter out the putrid smell of the landfill. It was rare that he had a fight that gave him any amount of trouble or forced him to rely on his heightened senses.

The fight, while fun, had been slightly disappointing.

With a sigh, Natsu shoves his left hand in his pocket, stalking for the building again, the thrill of the small battle already fading away. He carefully made his way through the low hanging fog, navigating around more large trash piles for several minutes before finally reaching the actual sewage building.

It was several stories tall and made of brick and cement. Two tall chimneys lifted themselves high into the bloodied sky. The exterior was rough. The bricks were chiped, and any windows that Natsu could see were either broken or not there entirely though someone or something had taken the try and cover several windows with thin planks of wood. The whole thing reminded Natsu of a cliche horror movie.

The first door that Natsu came across was barred on the other side, but, instead of wasting time trying to find another entrance, he simply kicked the thin piece of wood. The door didn't fold or break, but rather exploded into a shower of splinters, the chains holding the door closed breaking as well.

As soon he stepped into the building, Natsu wrinkled his nose in disgust. While the piles of garbage and shit outside gave off a plethora of horrendous smell, the inside gave off a single disgusting smell that Natsu had grown to recognize.

Rotting flesh.

It gave off a sickeningly sweet stench that was sour and rotten at the same time. It was an oily smell as well; one that clung to everything, including his skin. He hated the smell, loathed it, and was suddenly itching to beat the crap out of whoever was here and go take a bath.

Toya Aito obviously didn't make it.

Pushing that out of his head, Natsu started making his way through the building. The whole creepy movie vibe that he was getting earlier was only strengthened by the interior of the building. The red moonlight that streamed through the windows cast deep shadows while the abandoned sewage plant was seamed to be designed to take the shape of monstrous animals. Natsu found himself clenching his fists in anticipation every time he rounded a corner.

The monster found Natsu. He had just entered the smaller section of the building that was reserved for office space that was situated on the upper floors in the back of the plant. The area like every other part of the sewage plant was deserted but showed signs of having been inhabited recently. Natsu only had a chance to peek his head into one of the doors before what felt like a freight train slammed into his side.

He had only just managed maneuver his head from having his brains scrambled by the doorframe. The world spun and rushed passed, before his back collided with something that immediately gave way. His vision turned red, and a feeling of weightlessness came over him for several seconds before his back once again collided with something.

Stars swam in Natsu's vision for several seconds. Whatever had hit him hadn't held back. He groaned, feeling his back start protesting before relenting to his wishes as he slowly got to his feet. He was outside once again, though he was on the other side of the building than when he had entered. He had landed on a flat area of land, though there was still garbage on the ground around him, anything within a five feet radius had blown away when he had crashed into the ground and created a crater.

The sound of stones falling over each other caught Natsu's attention, and he turned to see his assailant standing in the hole that Natsu's body had created in the second story wall.

It was tall, at least seven feet tall, with corded muscles under its matted black fur. Even from his position and without enhanced sight, Natsu could see the moonlight gleaming off the creatures large sharp teeth, the moonlight made his teeth a red color similar to it's eyes that glowed with malice. Claws replaced his hands and feet, and, as expected of a werewolf, it's head was angular like a canine, drool dripping from it's maw.

He smirked behind the black scarf around his face, hopefully he'd get some fun out of this. Intentionally to anger his target, Natsu casually wiped the dust from the broken bricks off the back of his sweatshirt, before adjusting his scarf to cover his face securely in the fight to come.

Werewolves were creatures that were notorious for the danger they posed. They were extremely fast, known to easily outpace fleeing horses and many magical animals. Their senses were sharper than many others, rivaling snakes and griffins when it came to tracking. Not only that, but they packed a heavy punch, far from being near the top of the spectrum in terms of strength they still had enough to one hit most of their prey.

At least if that prey wasn't named Natsu Dragneel.

When the werewolf appeared in front of him with it's arm already pulled back to rake his face apart, Natsu barely even reacted, only raising a hand to clasp it's claw. Seeing it's attack stopped, it attempted to pull it hand back but Natsu held firm. Letting out a growl, it lashed out with its other claw, but Natsu caught it's wrist stopping the attack from getting within two feet of him. Surprise was evident in it's eyes for a second before it gave way to rage.

" **Human… strong…** " It said slowly. Mist leaked from between his teeth, and it's breath washed over Natsu, making him visibly wrinkle his nose. " **Human… kill… pack… Kill… human!** "

For all the advantages that werewolfs had, the reason why they were subjected to the middle of the food chain was because they lacked any significant amount of intelligence.

Not giving the creature a change to try and kill him again, Natsu launched himself forward smashing his forehead against its snout. The werewolf recoiled howling, and Natsu released it's claws only to lash out with a kick that connected with it's chest and sent it careening into the side of the building and through the wall.

Luckily for Natsu, the werewolf reappeared quickly, blood dripping from its maw and snout.

" **Talga… angry… Talga… kill… human…** " The now named Talga shot at Natsu, using his speed to close the distance between the two, and swipe at Natsu who ducked under the blow. Clenching his chain covered fist, Natsu pashed out with an uppercut catching Talga under his snout and launching him several feet in the air and away.

This time it took several long moments for the werewolf to get back to it's feet, though his eyes held more rage in them than before. Talga gave a bestial roar that made Natsu grimace slightly before appearing in front of the pink haired youth. He once again swiped at Natsu who once again ducked, but didn't give him a chance to retaliate by lashing out with a kick.

Natsu barely had time to tilt his head back enough to avoid the attack, the wind from the attack buffeting against his face and hair. He dove to the side to avoid the same foot as it came back down to smash him into the ground. Getting to his feet quickly, Natsu was quickly put on the defensive as he wove in and around the strikes that Talga sent at him, the werewolf's speed was obviously augmented by his rage.

It was after several minutes of dodging that Natsu decided that enough was enough, and, instead of ducking under a swipe from the creature's claws, he merely leaned back, letting the razor sharp claws pass within an inch of his face, before getting in close passed Talgas claws, his steeled fist cocked back.

Talga himself was obviously deeply unsettled by Natsu's move and attempted to create space by stepping back. Natsu followed taking a single step forward before lashing out with his fist. His strike connected, breaking several of Talga's ribs before he rocketed away through a new hole in the sewage plant and disappearing out of sight.

A gust of air left Natsu's nose silently, before he relaxed his stance. He was rather disappointed. Talga was a higher level target than what Natsu normally got, a borderline red Rouge Creature, but he provided only slightly more trouble for Natsu than his regular contracts. He had hoped for a challenge that would show the result of his training, which is why he'd asked that man for harder contracts. At least he finished the contract and would be getting more money than he usually did.

Despondent, Natsu quickly unraveled the chain from around his forearm, letting it fall to the ground, before shoving his hands in his pockets and heading in the direction he punched Talga in. He still had to confirm that he'd finished the beast.

Talga had created a very clear path through the factory for Natsu to follow. Walking through several holes in the brick and cement walls and eventually out onto the other side of the sewage plant, Natsu found his target on the far side of a collapsed trash pile. Surprisingly, Talga was still breathing, though he would obviously not be surviving long even if Natsu hadn't come to see him.

Stopping next to the werewolf, Natsu pulled out the piece of paper again weathering the weak glare leveled at him. Nodding that he'd taken care of the correct monster in the correct place, Natsu bent down and casually ripped on of the fangs from Talga's mouth. The creature gave a pitiful moan before Natsu drove the tooth between it's eyes. He watched as the body twitch once becoming still.

Almost instantaneously, Natsu saw the mist start fading and when he glanced up at the sky he noticed the moon returning to it's white color, the red of the sky giving way to speckled black. Nodding to himself once again, Natsu stuffed the paper and bloodied fang into his pocket and turned, heading for the exit, the clean up crew would take care of the mess.

Just as he was about to leave though, he noticed a gleaming piece of silver under a partially fallen pile of trash.

* * *

The amber liquid sent a pleasant trail of fire through her body, settling in her tummy and warming the rest of her body. She wasn't a drinker, even in the best of circumstances. Sure, she'd have a beer or two when the eccentricities of her guildmates reached it peak, when the noise of the guildhall pounded in her eardrums and the alcohol did a better job of warming her body than the whisky currently did.

The memories of the past caused of surge of conflicting emotions through her; happiness, bitterness, anger, elation, longing…

She took another sip of whisky, the glass of the bottle smooth against her lips.

There had been a time when Fairy Tail had celebrated the new year. Weeks had been spent on amassing the party supplies; traders, merchants, butchers, sailors, soldiers and many more people from all around Fiore had converged to Magnolia. A sense of magic surrounded the whole event, a magic that no one could ever hope to understand. All the inns had been booked, any space around the town had been used for campsites and temporary markets.

Then on the night of the new year, everything seemed to explode. A symphony of music wafted through the street, lights and flashes of magic illuminated the darkness. Natsu had-

A sharp pain pierced through Lucy and she hunched over, her eyes immediately watered but she could do nothing to stop the tears from falling from her eyes, only clinch her eyelids tightly. The half-filled bottle of whisky slipped from her grasp to shatter onto the floor but she paid it no mind, attempting instead to stop the pain in her chest. The hand clutching at her heart did nothing to sooth its pain, and her hand over her mouth did little, if anything, in stifling her sobs.

It had been a reoccurring thing, for her to not be able to do anything.

She jolted slightly when she felt a hand land softly on her back but did nothing to stop whoever it was when they started rubbed her back. She broke down there, silently, her grief too much for simple wailing and wracking sobs. Her body shook, as if she was having a seizure, and to be honest she wasn't sure that she wasn't. Her tears flowed like a river.

She didn't know how long her episode lasted, only that when she came back to herself that her back was sore from being hunched over and realized that she was clutching onto someone rather tightly. A hand continued to rub her back in circles, and for a second she was able to lose herself in the simple soothing motion. Still she needed to compose herself, so, taking a shaky breath, she pulled back rubbing her eyes furiously for a second, before speaking.

"Thanks," she managed, internally cringing at her voice. It was rough and raw with emotion.

"It's okay," they said. "We understand, Lu-chan."

She shouldn't have been surprised, but after hearing the affectionate nick-name she couldn't help but blink in slight astonishment before she managed to focus on the figure in front of her.

Levy looked like Lucy felt, though she wagered that she looked worse than her blue haired friend. The **Solid Script** mage looked as if she had just come out of a battle, which wasn't too far from the truth. She was covered in bandages, the most worrying being the gauze that wrapped all the way up her right arm. Her eyes were puffy, and there was evidence that she felt much the same that Lucy did by the tear stains on her cheeks. She had on a black tank top and leggings, her tattered skirt falling down to mid thigh.

"... L-Levy?"

A smile came to her friends face, a small spake of mischievousness flashing in her eye. "Good to know that you still remember your best friend."

In spite of the hollow ache in her chest and her fluctuating emotions, Lucy couldn't help but let a small smile come to her lips. It was something he would have said, a retort that took a total of three brain cells to formulate and something that Levy could have stooped to as an insult. The bluenette would have said something witty that left most people scratching their heads in confusion and needing to go to the library to figure out just _how_ she insulted them.

It spoke volumes just how well the bookworm knew Lucy because with just those words the blond felt a warmth spread through her body. A warmth that had been missing for a week now. She opened her mouth intent on saying something. A 'Thank you', a witty retort, anything, but her words caught in her throat stopping any sound from coming out. She closed her mouth and opened it again to try again, but Levy raised a hand, stopping her.

"I know," she said, and it was all Lucy could do to stop herself from crying in gratitude. Instead she grabbed the shorter girl and puller into a hug, putting all her emotion into it. They stayed that way for a while, but separated when the doors to the guildhall opened.

The guild itself was full of exhausted and recovering mages from all over Fiore, or rather the top five guilds. From her position at the bar, Lucy could see just about everyone that was in the main guild hall. The hall itself had been redecorated during the several days that the guilds of Fiore had been at war with the Alvarez Empire, and now, a week after Zeref called his forces together after landing at different areas in Fiore, Fairy Tail had become the headquarters of the wizarding society. The tables that had taken residence in the center of the hall had all been evicted to make space for large assemblies, though a single, large table with a topographic map of the continent was situated in the middle of the floor. Two rings of tables covered the perimeter of the large hall now in an attempt to make enough room for all the mages that stayed in and around the guildhall, though the courtyard helped as well.

As the bar was a separate section from the main area, Lucy had a good view of who was in the main hall as well as what was going on.

Further down the bar Gray, Leon, Sting, and Rogue all stood huddled together a beer in each their hands as they spoke about possible plans for the next inevitable confrontation with the armies of the Alvarez Empire. Both the ice users and surprisingly Rogue were all missing shirts, though the dragon slayer did have a large, fur lined coat hanging off of his shoulders and bandages around his midrift. As she watched, Leon started unbuckling his belt, he, himself, oblivious to the act as he continued talking. The small smile on Sting's face told Lucy that he knew what Leon was doing and was probably going to tease him over it later.

Off on the other side of the hall, a gaggle of ladies from Mermaid Heel all sat together, though the blond did see Jenny Realight and Meredy among them. The blond and Meredy were both rather capable fighters, though Lucy had had her doubts after seeing Mirajane's competition with the other blond in the Grand Magic Games. She was rather happy to see that most of the wounds on the women there were just light scratches or bruises and nothing serious.

A couple tables down from them, Elfman sat with Cana. Both Fairy Tail wizards nursed a beer in their hands; though while the heavily muscled white haired man only sipped his, the **Magic Card** user did much the same in her own fashion; draining her cup in one go before dunking her tarken into the barrel by her side and sitting for several more seconds before repeating the process.

While it was good to see the card mage taking it light on the alcohol, Lucy couldn't help but feel that the melancholic air that hung over the mages in the guild hall hung around her more heavily. Her mannerisms were the same, and she still wore her usual get up, a checkered bikini top and a pair of black pants under a decorative shawl that hung at her waist leaving just one of her legs to be seen. On the outside Cana looked fine, but the more Lucy looked at her, the more she believed that something was wrong.

First off the mage was only drinking her beer a mug at a time, and while, like Lucy noted before, she was happy to see the brunette taking her beer in what would be considered sips for her, it looked more like she was going through the motions than anything. Her eyes were glazed over, and she only absent mindedly moved the hair that had fallen in her face to the side, not even noticing that her hair could really use a brush.

Not that Lucy could judge, her own blond hair had been pulled into a sloppy side ponytail and she still had to brush hair out of her eyes.

Directly in front of her, the forms of Jet and Droy sat sleeping on one side of their table. On the other bench sat Gajeel, his long, black mane of hair fell down his back and nearly touched the floor. The Iron Dragon Slayer was covered in bandages and bruises, but his red eyes glared at the table in front of him with enough intensity for it to spontaneously combust. The beer in front of him was untouched.

"Oh dear, it seems they're back."

The melodical voice of Mirajane broke Lucy out of her thoughts. The S-class wizard was currently working at the bar with the help of Kinana. Though she was still one of the strongest fighters of Fairy Tail and someone who fought continuously on the front line, the oldest Strauss sibling still managed to muster up enough energy to play the role of barmaid. Her hair still fell around her shoulders while her bangs were kept away from her face by being pulled into a small ponytail that stood straight up. She wore her usual barmaid getup, a maroon dress, pink bow and chain necklace.

It took Lucy a second to register her words, before she turned toward the guild entrance, the small flare of hope that appeared in her chest was crushed instantly, when she didn't see the familiar pink head of hair she had hoped for.

The first person she saw was Jura, a former Lamia Scale member, and one of the Ten Wizard Saints of Fiore. Despite how nice the man was, Lucy couldn't help but be wary of getting on the man's bad side, just like anybody else. Tall and broad, with tan skin and a long goatee, Jura Neekis's very presence alluded power with and without his magic. With only two small ovals of hair to act as a mustache, and similar tuffs of hair for his eyebrows, the man almost had a comical feel to him. But Lucy had seen the man's face change from his default pleasant disposition to a scowl that hardened his face so much that she realized his moniker, _Iron Rock Jura_ , was a very accurate name.

The man dressed like a monk with a white kimono top that was embroidered with red along the edges, and tan hakama pants. A black hiori rested on his shoulders, and he held his hand in his sleeves. Next to him was the master of Lamia Scale; a batty old woman with so much gray hair that she pulled it into three separate buns, one right on top of each other. Her earlobes were large, and she was constantly making people 'spin'.

Next to them was the master of Blue Pegasus, Bob, and Ichiya Vandaya Kotobuki. Ichiya himself was a short man, that spoke about 'men' in a different way from Elfman's 'Man!'. He was a S-class Mage, though he didn't look like it. Ichiya was pudgy, and wore a white suite that reeked of his perfume. His face was dominated by a large flat nose and a chin with a cleft so deep, Lucy was sure he could hide things in it. Next to his master though, he looked rather normal. The man/girl/thing that was named Bob was as eccentric as they came. It wore a purple tank top with small angle wings on the back with purple and pink striped shorts that revealed hairy legs and feet that were stuffed into purple high heels. Bob was rotund, possessing three chins, each covered in a noticeable amount of stubble. Around it's neck was a gold necklace, while lipstick covered it's mouth and a permanent spot of blush adorned it's cheeks.

Lucy quickly averted her eyes from the strange duo and noticed Kaguya walking ahead of Minerva and Makarov. The Mermaid Heel mage looked immaculate as always. Her black hair was cut and framed her face perfectly, falling down to the middle of her back. She wore a white kimono top decorated with black flowers and a dark blue skirt, a black obi tied around her midriff in a large bow at her back. Her sword was sheathed in hand, and she looked less likely to cut someone than she did during the Grand Magic Games.

The woman talking to Makarov, had a gentle smile on her face. Her glossy purple hair cascaded down to her lower back while she parted it in the middle for it to frame her face as well as creating two dango loops on the top of her head. She was a beautiful woman, with short eyebrows a simple, shimmering, deep purple kimono that hugged her womanly figure, and showed off the skin on her chest and leg. She had a gentle aura around her, and an even more gentle voice, but Lucy still had a hard time suppressing a shudder every time she saw her.

Makarov walked beside Minerva, his short stature becoming painfully obvious when he stood by her side. He had a ring of white hair around his head, and his bushy eyebrows were only topped by his even bushier mustache. He had on his Ten Wizard Saints outfit, a snow white coat with golden shoulder decorations with equally white fur lining. Under he wore a blue and white long sleeved shirt with dark pants and boots.

Behind the Fairy Tail master, the last person stepped through the large double doors, and, just like every other time she saw her within the last week, Lucy's breath hitched and a surge of emotion rose in her only to be quickly squashed.

Erza Scarlet, for once, wasn't wearing her Heart Kreuz armor, and was instead wearing a simple white blouse and blue skirt with knee length stockings and flat black shoes. On her hands were black gloves that were missing the majority of the fingers and a large portion of the backs. Erza's scarlet hair was flowing freely, falling to the middle of her back, her bangs partially covering her right eye.

As Lucy watched Erza stepped through the doorway and survey the guildhall before her eye brown eyes connected to Lucy's who quickly averted her gaze. She didn't have a problem with Erza; she was a great mage, one of the strongest, and even greater person.

Strong but gentle when she wanted to be.

Powerful but not overwhelming to her friends.

Helpful and knowledgeable, but not conceited or overbearing.

Beautiful but not arrogant.

No, Lucy didn't have a problem with Erza, in fact she idolized her; saw her as the older sister she never had but always wanted. Sure she was a bit strict, but she knew how to have fun and they connected very well. They'd been through so much together, dark guilds, demons, even dragons, and in all honesty Lucy loved Erza as she did all the members of her team: more than the rest of Fairy Tail.

Not that she didn't love her guild, she'd give her life for Fairy Tail without a second though. After everything that they had been through because of her, it was the least she could do. Even in their current situation, at war with the Alvarez Empire and on the losing side, she'd still give her life is she knew that she'd be able to save at least one member Fairy Tail.

Without hesitation.

Just like him.

No- again,no- Lucy did not have a problem with Erza, it was more that she desired to be in her position, or, to be more specific, to have something the redhead had.

"Lucy."

The blond started, jerking violently on her stool and nearly falling off before she managed to grab a hold of the bar to stop herself. Her eyes focused on Erza, and another surge of anger - no jealousy and longing- shot through her, but she managed to push it down and give her friend a small smile.

"Hey, Erza," she managed weakly. She was tired and still needed to recover the majority of her magic.

"We're about to have a conference." Erza's voice was deeper than her's, Lucy knew, but it definitely didn't mean that she didn't sound feminine. In fact it was the opposite, she sounded more mature, more sensual, while retaining an edge of femininity and expressiveness that came with a female voice. Lucy blinked, before nodding and standing up from her stool, noticing Levy make her way over to Gajeel.

Erza walked in front of her, letting Lucy gaze at the two ends of Natsu's scarf that the redhead had wrapped around her neck.

* * *

It was nearly an two hours later that Natsu finally turned onto his street pushing his prize next to him. He would have been back an hour ago, if that old man had shown up, but instead he'd sent that annoying girl in his place, and she'd been late. As usual. And then when she finally showed up, she kept talking and talking, until he finally had just snatched his cash pay and walked away.

Again he would have been back and in his room by now if he hadn't gone back to the sewage plant turned garbage dump, but he had and now was lugging back his new motorcycle.

It had been a purely spontaneous decision to take the beaten and broken vehicle, and in all honesty he probably didn't even need it. He had his hands full trying to keep up with homework, going to school, working at the shop, training, and doing some work for that weird old man. Trying to add another task to his already cluttered schedule would only lead to him overworking himself. Not to mention, considering the state of the bike, he probably would have less problems repairing it if he only had the frame.

Less time too, but seeing as the frame was just fine, though the engine, exhaust pipes, motor, steering, and a myriad of other things needed to be fixed it showed Natsu that he had a challenge ahead of him. Good thing he never back down from a challenge. That coupled with the fact that his training had recently plateaued and for him to continue with it he needed a strong enough opponent to fight, left a gap in his schedule. Now he'd just focus on keeping his body in shape, and taking more contracts on the weekend, and fill the rest of the gap with fixing the bike.

He pushed the bike ahead of him, intent on getting back so that he be able to get an in depth understanding of what was wrong with his bike so that he could formulate on how to get it back up and running. Before he could get too close to the garage, he heard what sounded like laughter coming from the alleyway between his apartment building and the garage he worked at. Already knowing what was probably going on, Natsu maneuvered his bike so that it leaned against the brick wall of his apartment building before going to confront the people stupid enough to try something on his street.

The scene he came across was one that he, sadly, had become used to seeing. About seven eighteen-to-twenty year old guys crowded around a single woman, who, oddly enough, looked not the least bit scared or apprehensive. In fact if he had to say, Natsu would say she looked bored and a bit annoyed.

"Come on, Baby," one of the guys said, "We'll make it worth your time."

Natsu nearly snorted. How cleché.

The woman obviously felt the same way Natsu did, judging by the eye roll she gave the guy. "I said no. Leave."

The next part was something that Natsu never really understand. When the guys around her bristled, one even growling pathetically, he could already tell that the woman's words had angered them. Why in the hell are they getting angry? They thought she was a prostitute, ask her for her services in exchange for money, she says no, they leave and save money. Why the hell are these guys getting so worked up over it?

Still just because the part where they got angry still confused him, Natsu didn't even bother to sit around and wait for the men to respond. Only taking the time to make sure that his scarf covered the bottom of his face, he launched himself down the alleyway.

"You bitch!" another said. "We'll ju- huh?"

While the man had been speaking, Natsu had bolted toward the group, coming up behind the man who was at the back of the pack and was in the process of taking out a knife. He lowered his shoulder and slammed it into the man's unsuspecting back causing him to be launched forward and slam into another man. Not even stopping to watch his handiwork, or slowing down in the least, Natsu abruptly changed directions and launched a punch to the nearest man's stomach.

He managed to catch another man with an uppercut before the other men managed to get over their shock.

"You litt-urk!" The man had tried to speak and swing at Natsu, who deflected it away from himself with a lazy block before jumping and ramming a knee into the man's face. His eye rolled into the back of his head, and he was unconscious before he even hit the ground.

The other three men didn't waist time trying to threaten Natsu, and instead, rushed him, while out of the corner of his eye, Natsu noticed the second guy he hit, was getting back up. Natsu would have been impressed by the man's constitution if it wasn't for the fact that his fat had probably absorbed enough energy from his punch for him to get back up.

Making a note in his mind to keep an eye out for when the fat guy tried to get into the fight, Natsu absently ducked a wild swing before lashing out with a kick that knocked two guys off their feet, but the last managed to back up in time before diving back in with a straight jab. At least this one had a little bit of training. Not that it would help him, but Natsu did notice that he did manage to not get caught in his attempt to get all of them on the ground.

Raising his left hand, Natsu caught the fist that shot toward his face, before quickly readjusting his grip and pulled his opponent toward him. His fist hit the man's stomach twice then smashed into his chest, cracking a rib, before the pink haired teenager's fist landed on the underside of his opponent's chin; lifting him several feet into the air before he landed on the ground, knocked out.

Noticing the big guy trying to sneak up from behind him, Natsu decided he'd act oblivious, and let the man grab him in a bear hug. He immediately regretted it when he realized that the man smelled worse than the sewage plant.

"Guys!" he shouted and his two remaining friends dashed toward them intent on beating the crap out of Natsu. To bad they never got a chance.

The lady from before suddenly appeared between them and Natsu. She lashed out with a roundhouse kick that connected the left man's face so violently his whole body stopped moving forward and spring back the way he came. His friend, running to fast too fast to change course, sprinted full speed into an elbow to his kidney before having his face smashed in by one of the cleanest jabs Natsu had ever seen.

Not letting the woman's sudden appearance go to waste, Natsu jerked his head back, feeling the cartilage of the fat man's nose give way, before he reached over his shoulder, grabbed the man's clothes and arm, and, using a fraction of his true strength, flipped him over his shoulder.

The whole thing was over in less than ten second, something that would astound most people. For Natsu it was just another day. He glared down at the moaning man before him. It was actually something that filled Natsu with pity. There had been times where he had been beaten within a centimeter of his life, and he still got up because he knew that it was something he needed to do. To see people who had attempted to take something selfishly, and only be able to take that small amount of punishment made him actually pity the man.

"Why?"

The sudden question snapped Natsu back into the present. Ignoring the moaning and cursing of the men around him, he locked eyes with the woman that he had gone out of his way to help. She was a beautiful woman, he'd admit, with navy blue hair that covered her brown, right eye that fell down to her thighs. She was tall as well, probably standing an inch taller than him, though he did notice that she was wearing heels so he couldn't be too sure. Her attire made him question whether the men were incorrect in their assumption of her job. Her breasts were barely covered by her violet trench coat top, and she was clearly not wearing anything beneath it. She wore a mini-skirt the same color as he top, that was equally as daring just by length, and was slitted on her side.

Her question finally registered in Natsu mind and he could only tilt his head to convey his curiosity.

The woman obviously understood his unspoken question, as she elaborated. "Why did you help?" she asked, and Natsu noted that he voice had a deeper tember in it than he was used to. "I could have dealt with them on my own, and even if I couldn't you were so outnumbered that a normal person would have been beaten."

Blinking for a second, Natsu just shrugged. Did he need a reason to help someone?

A silence fell between them, and Natsu realized that all the men had passed out. A minute passed, and the pink haired teen was about to leave when the woman spoke again.

"What's your name, kid?"

Natsu blinked raised and eyebrow, before he stared at her for several long seconds. Nodding to himself, He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a tiny notebook with a pin. Flipping it open he quickly wrote something before raising it for the woman to see.

" _I am Natsu Dragneel."_

Raising her eyebrow at the admittedly odd way of communicating, she quickly accepted it and moved on. "Kalawarner," she said.

Natsu nodded.

"Do you speak?"

Natsu shook his head.

Kalawarner's lips twitched upwards, and she shifted her weight in her heels. "Well, Natsu Dragneel, I would like to thank you for your assistance."

Natsu quickly scribbled something down on his notebook before showing her. " _No need for thanks,"_ he wrote. " _I helped because I don't like people like them."_

"I insist," she said, making a show of looking his body up and down. "You're young. Do you go to school?"

Natsu nodded. " _Kuoh Acadamy."_

A small smile spread across her face, drastically improving her already beautiful face. "How about we meet tomorrow? At the coffee shop just down the street. My treat"

The pinkette blinked then shrugged. " _Sure."_

Still smiling, the woman nodded and made her way out of the alleyway, causing Natsu skin to tingle as she passed him.

* * *

AN: So what do you think? Tell me what you think in a review. Also for anyone who is interested, this story is going to be pretty AU though I do plan on following the canon storyline for a while, as well as giving Natsu a harem. It is HighSchool DxD after all.

Until next time, make sure to brush your teeth, don't get caught downloading illegally, and stay away from child predators.

And remember, Sempai always notices you.


End file.
